Slow Computer

[prestige]

Hello Everyone, my computer is very slow sounds like crackling noise, it takes a while for it to complete come up, i have 128 ram (and everytime I down load something it says that my windows virtual memory is getting very low.

I am about to start this new job and I have to have an upgraded computer (Java 2, Internet explorer 7, windows xp service pack 2 and 256 ram mb- (can all of that be installed on my computer and run better and faster like a new computer, help I really need help and if I install windows xp service pack 2 will I lose any information that I already have downloaded.

Thanks

 

[baronvongogo]

the crackling could be a fan dying or hard drive on its way out.

installing service pack 2 should not affect any files you have just make sure you have plenty of hard drive space.

The virtual memory thing is your paging file because you have such little ram its using virtual memory(space stored on hard drive because not enough ram available). upgrading to 256mb will help enough.

It most certainly wont run like a brand new computer, it`ll still be slow and sluggish as your comp sounds old. You could reinstall windows but you would have to backup all your files.

 

[tomc102968]

prestige any idea of your motherboard is? or can you give more details now is a good time to get high end single core processors for cheap

 

[prestige]

I know it is a del pentinium 4.1

 

[ablaye]

Defragment your hard drive. Also, you may want to empty some free space on your PC.

 

[prestige]

I have already defrag my hard drive, (you know how those computers that takes very long to come up) that is how mine is, I did empty free space on my computer, it is still slow (it says vitual memory is very low (i tried to download windows xp service pack 2 and it did not download-(in the past I was able to down windows xp serice pack 1 but I cant download windows xp service pack 2- (why)-

 

[Trotter]

128MB? No wonder it's slow. Windows likes RAM... I wouldn't recommend buying a system with less than 512, and that's with NO gaming.

 

[prestige]

Good morning, I was able to get 256 ram on my computer, now how do I get 600 MHz on my computer, I currently have 497MHz, can that happen?

 

[baronvongogo]

You would need to overclock but I wouldn't recommend doing it with such an old comp with obviously limited components. You also wouldn't see a huge performance leap.

 

[Drizo]

If it isn't really ancient, then you can trade it in to Gateway which I'm in the process of doing with my old Pentium 4 Gateway, and I got an estimate of $235 so I'm going to use that money to build a E6300 beaterbox. They also cover shipping.

Oh and mine was one of the first Pentium 4's, so its that really old socket 423 w/ rambus.